Collaborative Approach to Fisheries Management as a Way to Increase the Effectiveness of Future Regulations in the Galapagos Archipelago

Usseglio, Paolo; Schuhbauer, Anna; Friedlander, Alan M.

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-02769-2_9

Cited by 11 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Such happenings can be traced to a lack of credibility and legitimacy that fishers perceive in the co-management of the GMR [10,76], which in turn results in the observed pattern of lack of enforcement and high rates of noncompliance [77]. Our results strongly suggest that the bacalao fishery is experiencing both recruitment and growth overfishing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…It is important to note the futility of setting “paper regulations” that will not be followed. There is an obvious need to further the participation of fishers in the decision making process to a fully cooperative approach where fishers are included in all of the research phases, as fishers note this as the major reason for their distrust in current management regulations [10]. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This growth in the fishing sector was paralleled by immigration from mainland Ecuador, resulting in a rapid population increase from 1,500 people in the 1950s, to over 25,000 in 2010 [8]. Overfishing of both sea cucumbers and lobsters led to a decrease in the number of fishers since the year 2000, to an estimate of ~400 active fishers in 2012 [9,10]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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So Long and Thanks for All the Fish: Overexploitation of the Regionally Endemic Galapagos Grouper Mycteroperca olfax (Jenyns, 1840)

et al. 2016

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The regionally endemic Galapagos Grouper, locally known as bacalao, is one of the most highly prized finfish species within the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR). Concerns of overfishing, coupled with a lack of fishing regulations aimed at this species raises concerns about the current population health. We assessed changes in population health over a 30-year period using three simple indicators: (1) percentage of fish below reproductive size (Lm); (2) percentage of fish within the optimum length interval (Lopt); and (3) percentage of mega-spawners in the catch. Over the assessed period, none of the indicators reached values associated with healthy populations, with all indicators declining over time. Furthermore, the most recent landings data show that the vast majority of the bacalao caught (95.7%,) were below Lm, the number of fish within the Lopt interval was extremely low (4.7%), and there were virtually no mega-spawners (0.2%). Bacalao fully recruit to the fishery 15 cm below the size at which 50% of the population matures. The Spawning Potential Ratio is currently 5% of potential unfished fecundity, strongly suggesting severe overfishing. Our results suggest the need for bacalao-specific management regulations that should include minimum (65 cm TL) and maximum (78 cm TL) landing sizes, slot limits (64–78 cm TL), as well as a closed season during spawning from October to January. It is recognized that these regulations are harsh and will certainly have negative impacts on the livelihoods of fishers in the short term, however, continued inaction will likely result in a collapse of this economically and culturally valuable species. Alternative sources of income should be developed in parallel with the establishment of fishing regulations to limit the socio-economic disruption to the fishing community during the transition to a more sustainable management regime.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish: Overexploitation of the Regionally Endemic Galapagos Grouper Mycteroperca olfax (Jenyns, 1840)

et al. 2016

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“…in the production of knowledge. Fisher participation is, therefore, more about ticking the boxes pertaining to public participation than actual participation (Arnstein 1969 ), making the participatory process largely irrelevant and dysfunctional (Stone et al 2006 ;Usseglio et al 2014 ).…”

Section: Information Production and Mobilizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Two Rules for the Same Fish: Small-Scale Fisheries Governance in Mainland Ecuador and Galapagos Islands

Paladines

2015

MARE Publication Series

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The small-scale fi sheries sector in the Ecuador mainland and Galapagos Islands face major challenges triggered by large scale human and climatic events, which compromise their sustainability. Lack of trust, leadership and cohesion among small-scale fi sheries entities, limited organizational skills, and social problems within fi shing communities reduce this sector's governability. Further, lack of willingness of fi shers to observe rules, limited governing capacity and lack of political attention to small-scale fi sheries often contribute to making the overall system less governable. According to interactive governance theory, different governing modes would be suitable for different systems, depending also on the types and quality of governing interactions. Using the interactive governance framework, this chapter explores the performance of the hierarchical and co-governance mode for small-scale fi sheries governance in the Ecuador mainland and Galapagos Islands, respectively. These two case studies, by using empirical evidence and triangulationbased methods, analyze the small-scale fi sheries sector and some mechanisms through which the governing system, the system-to-be-governed, and governing interactions are operating. The chapter highlights that both hierarchical and cogovernance modes of governance have underperformed and consequently that their governability has been reduced for three main reasons: the mismatch between legal frameworks, the undefi ned social system's borders, and the use of inappropriate mechanisms for information mobilization. The chapter concludes by suggesting that both models need to contribute to national initiatives, to strength the social system, and to increase the small-scale fi sheries sector governability. Only then can fi sheries sustainability be achieved.

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“…Denkinger and Vinueza (33) examine the Galapagos Marine Reserve as a dynamic social-ecological system. Several authors examine fundamental elements of the marine reserve with a special focus on the local fisheries (34)(35)(36)(37). Associated with the degradation of the fisheries industry in the Galapagos, tourism has expanded considerably, thereby creating economic opportunities for individuals, households, and communities.…”

Section: Abms: Fishers and Livelihood Alternativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interactions of social, terrestrial, and marine sub-systems in the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

Walsh

Mena

2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Galapagos is often cited as an example of the conflicts that are emerging between resource conservation and economic development in island ecosystems, as the pressures associated with tourism threaten nature, including the iconic and emblematic species, unique terrestrial landscapes, and special marine environments. In this paper, two projects are described that rely upon dynamic systems models and agent-based models to examine human-environment interactions. We use a theoretical context rooted in complexity theory to guide the development of our models that are linked to socialecological dynamics. The goal of this paper is to describe key elements, relationships, and processes to inform and enhance our understanding of human-environment interactions in the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador. By formalizing our knowledge of how systems operate and the manner in which key elements are linked in coupled humannatural systems, we specify rules, relationships, and rates of exchange between social and ecological features derived through statistical functions and/or functions specified in theory or practice. The processes described in our models also have practical applications in that they emphasize how political policies generate different human responses and model outcomes, many detrimental to the social-ecological sustainability of the Galapagos Islands.Galapagos Islands | human-environment interactions | dynamic systems model | agent-based model | process understanding

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Collaborative Approach to Fisheries Management as a Way to Increase the Effectiveness of Future Regulations in the Galapagos Archipelago

Cited by 11 publications

References 22 publications

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish: Overexploitation of the Regionally Endemic Galapagos Grouper Mycteroperca olfax (Jenyns, 1840)

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish: Overexploitation of the Regionally Endemic Galapagos Grouper Mycteroperca olfax (Jenyns, 1840)

Two Rules for the Same Fish: Small-Scale Fisheries Governance in Mainland Ecuador and Galapagos Islands

Interactions of social, terrestrial, and marine sub-systems in the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

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